Himalayas are so grand, big and dominating in their own right, you cannot have something that dominates Himalayas. You can use the energy and flows of Himalayas with a purposeful bike. Therefore Himalayan bike is all about the balance and harmony.Ketan Thakkar&Satish John | ETAuto | Updated: February 04, 2016, 16:35 IST

In recent months, Lal, undertook several arduous journeys to test ride the bike which he says, “is the first ground up bike for Royal Enfield since Eicher came in.” On the significance of the name Himalayan, Lal, for once did not weigh his words.

“Himalaya has become an Enfield’s spiritual home. We never even thought of any other name.” Siddhartha Lal, spoke exclusively to ETAuto’s Ketan Thakkar and Satish John on the sidelines of unveiling the product.

Edited Excerpts:What is the story behind Himalayan?While the project has been in our minds as a very broad lose idea for may be 15 years. We started making a decision 5 years ago. After studying alternatives, business ideas, we pushed the ‘go button’ about three and half years ago.

I have been part of the development even before testing and validation, during design and development, even at the geometry stage, I was very involved, lot of that was done in UK and India.

How important is Himalayan to Royal Enfield?I can’t say it is not important. It has been 25 years ago when Eicher took over the brand, it is terribly important for us, because it is a creation of new category of adventure tourer – it will take time to mature.

This is the first fully grounds up bike for Royal Enfield since Eicher came in. A lot of people both in India and UK have worked on this project. It has a grounds up engine, chassis, a new platform creating a new category. We have not been involved to this extent in our earlier projects.

There are people who want such kind of bikes, but the rest of the people don’t know that they wanted an adventurer tourer, like people didn’t know that they wanted a classic.

While we want it to be an instant success, we are very cognisant of the fact, it may take some time to mature. Over the next couple of years, we will keep growing the idea of adventure touring in India.

It is important, but it is not urgent. It is absolutely core to what we are all about. It is the right time to launch it, we have the momentum and we will continue to build the market.

From a consumer point of view, it is already happening, people are going to Himalayas, we are giving a purpose-built motorcycle for them.The behaviour is already there, bike is getting there. We are very confident that whether they adopt it in gigantic proportion or no, it is a relevant concept.Would you take this to overseas markets?Focus is very much in India, this year we will focus on developing the Indian market. We may send a few motorcycles and check.

International markets have evolved, what and how we launch this remains to be seen. Looking at the early signs of conversation, we are excited about this project for some emerging markets.

Why the name Himalayan?Himalaya has become Enfield’s spiritual home. We never even thought of any other name.

That’s the legend, the most demanding aspect in India or anyone in sub-continent is to ride to Himalayas. It is the ultimate journey for motorcycle rider. The terrain is devastating and inhospitable, for all our lives and for Royal Enfield in India that has been our ultimate journey to offer an appropriate touring option.

For 12-15 years, this has been brewing in the back of the mind - motorcycle for Himalayas.

The way we started, we wanted to distinguish Himalayan from other heavy adventure tourers. We want to break away from the notion that adventurer tourer are very intimidating.

This is the first fully grounds up bike for Royal Enfield since Eicher came in. A lot of people both in India and UK have worked on this project. It has a grounds up engine, chassis, a new platform creating a new category.

Himalayas are so grand, big and dominating in their own right, you cannot have something that dominates Himalayas. You can use the energy and flows of Himalayas with a purposeful bike. Therefore Himalayan bike is all about the balance and harmony.

How much time have you spent on the bike?I have ridden it for few thousand kilometres. I have spent at least 15-20 days in the last two years riding this motorcycle at various places. I rode it from Delhi to Leh-Ladakh and just last month, I rode the Himalayan from Goa to Hampi.

Were there any specific feedback from your end?Oh, there were constant feedbacks throughout the lifecycle of project. The big one was – at some point in project – to change the first gear ratio, to give a better pick up.

Interestingly the second one was from my wife who gave a feedback while we were riding in Himalayas, that the pillion seat was a degree backward, leaning backward, so we changed the geometry of rear seats pretty late in the project.

What potential does this project have?It is a clean sheet, grounds up vehicle, we have not done it half heartedly. There are no compromises on any front including the design brief. While it has to be purpose built to go off-road, it is not extreme, it should not be intimidating vehicle, it has been engineered to have good on-road ride.

In the same way, SUV has become main stream, it is designed to be a good off roader, but also have a good on road manner. Similarly the Himalayan has really good on-road manners. We have ensured that there is a wide band of torque, which is easily accessible, so that it should be fun to ride at everyday speeds, yet it should be non-extreme.